tramp [træmp] vb 1. (intr) to walk long and far; hike ; march or trudge 2. (intr) to wander about as a vagabond or tramp 3. (intr) NZ to walk for sport or recreation, esp in the bush

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The last couple days have been a trip. We wrapped up the section from Otautau, passing through Colac Bay, Riverton and Invercargill.

We had our last night in a hut, unexpectedly but since it was pouring rain, we were happy for it. A quick video tour of Martin’s Hut:

Have to appreciate Colac Beach for having a great surfer monument:

Riverton was a cute town and then we hit Invercargill, which we passed right through.

It’s felt a lot like the North Island around here: lots of muddy jungle, small hills instead of proper mountains, in and out of towns all day, farmland and roads instead of trails….but it’s been pretty nevertheless. We were back near the ocean and the beach, which was exciting since we hadn’t been on beach since the North Island (but this time, it was freezing).

After passing through Invercargill we spent our last night in the tent in a farm halfway to Bluff and then wrapped things up the next morning.

Not a bad slogan.

Getting to the end of such a long journey always creates a mix of emotions. We’ve been planning and working on this trip for well over a year, walking it for about a third of one, and now, finally, we don’t have to walk anymore.

We celebrated with a bottle of champagne and some lovely Bluff oysters (no, Mike didn’t try any).

It’s surprisingly liberating to have the thing done and the task complete, but we’ll miss it.

The North Island really delivered when it came to snazzy mailboxes. The South Island is something of a disappointment by comparison, but this is because we walked so few road miles on the South Island.

Regardless, I’ve kept my mailbox-dar activated, and found the following good ones:

I had a good fall as we were descending to a campground a few days back.

Didn’t see a rollie rock under a bed of grass on the “trail”. Stepped on it, took a spill.

It’s coming along nicely:

Getting some lovely hues...

Today and yesterday it has been raining. This is our last forest section and the last time we have any elevation at all. Yesterday we climbed over the top of a wide open hill, with barely any ground trail and only sparse poles to guide us through a whiteout with strong wind and rain.

This is the only photo...can you see the trail in the upper left? This was just before it disappeared completely.